MINGORA: Hundreds of precious trees were destroyed in a fire that erupted near the archaeological sites in Odigram area the other day. The blaze also slightly affected parts of the eighth century Raja Gira castle.

The fire erupted on the mountain at Odigram close to the Raja Gira castle, the last Hindu Shahi ruler of Swat.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s oldest mosque known as Mahmood Ghaznavi Mosque is also located on the same mountain.

Museum official says nearby archaeological sites remained safe

Swat Museum curator Faizur Rehman who was present at the site told Dawn on Saturday that luckily the entire site of the Mahmood Ghaznavi Mosque remained safe. “The fire reached to one side of the Raja Gira castle which was slightly affected, but overall both the archaeological sites are safe,” he said.

According to residents of Odigram, the fire started on Friday afternoon when hundreds of local tourists were picnicking at the site.

“We saw huge smoke on Gira hill in the afternoon which spread in no time. The fire destroyed over a thousand trees and burnt many birds as the site was known for wild birds in Swat valley,” said Barkat Nasar, a resident of Odigram.

Local people showed their grief over the destruction of trees, greenery and wildlife and said that the site was not only famous for its archaeological remains, but also for its green beauty.

Mohammad Rafiq, a fire rescue officer of the Rescue 1122, said that despite the height the firefighting team was actively busy in extinguishing the fire on the mountain.

“The fire is now under control and we will be able to extinguish it,” he said on Saturday. He appreciated the local people and said that they were taking part to control the fire with the Rescue 1122 team.

Published in Dawn, June 5th, 2016